North Korea nuclear talks end in failure, no new meeting scheduled

BEIJING (AP) The first talks on North Korea's nuclear program since the communist nation tested an atomic device ended Friday without an agreement to move ahead on disarmament or schedule further

Thursday, December 21st 2006, 10:17 am

By: News On 6

BEIJING (AP) The first talks on North Korea's nuclear program since the communist nation tested an atomic device ended Friday without an agreement to move ahead on disarmament or schedule further negotiations.

During five days of meetings in Beijing, negotiators said Pyongyang refused to talk about its nuclear weapons program, and instead stuck to its demand that the U.S. remove financial restrictions it has imposed on the regime.

North Korea's main nuclear envoy said Friday the communist nation would bolster its atomic arsenal in response to U.S. pressure.

``The U.S. is taking a tactic of both dialogue and pressure, and carrots and sticks,'' Kim Kye Gwan told reporters. ``We are responding with dialogue and a shield, and by a shield we are saying we will further improve our deterrent.''

Chinese envoy Wu Dawei released a statement saying the sides simply reaffirmed a September 2005 agreement where the North pledged to disarm in exchange for security guarantees and aid. The countries _ China, Japan, Russia, the U.S. and the two Koreas _ agreed to return home and ``reconvene at the earliest opportunity,'' Wu said.

Earlier, Japan's top envoy questioned whether the talks would survive as a forum for dealing with North Korea's weapons if they failed again to make any progress.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said after the talks ended Friday, however, that he still believes the six-nation framework is the most effective means of getting a breakthrough.

In more than three years of meetings, the North has only committed in principle to disarm but taken no concrete steps to do so _ instead going ahead with its first nuclear test on Oct. 9.

``There will be opinions questioning the credibility of the six-party talks,'' Japanese envoy Kenichiro Sasae said, without elaborating. He did not say what alternative formats would be proposed, if any.

The U.S. envoy accused North Korea ahead of Friday's meetings of not addressing the actual issue of its atomic programs.

``When the (North) raises problems, one day it's financial issues, another day it's something they want but they know they can't have, another day it's something we said about them that hurt their feelings,'' U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Hill said. ``What they need to do is to get serious about the issue that made them such a problem ... their nuclear activities.''

Pyongyang says the U.S. is waging a campaign to isolate North Korea from the international financial system and has insisted that it end. The U.S. accuses North Korea of involvement in counterfeiting $100 bills and of money laundering, and has blacklisted a Macau bank that it alleges the North used to launder money to fund its weapons program.

American and North Korean experts had separate talks on the issue this week in Beijing, but made no breakthroughs and were tentatively set to meet in the United States next month.

``We have requested the U.S. to release the sanctions first and then go into a discussion on substantive issues for the implementation'' of the September 2005 agreement, Kim said.

Even when it takes up the nuclear issue, Kim said the North wouldn't immediately talk about dismantling the bombs it has already made. But he promised the North won't launch a nuclear attack or sell its atomic technology.

``Since we are already a proud nuclear state, we have already announced that we will not threaten other countries with nuclear (weapons) and fully live up to our responsibility of preventing proliferation,'' Kim said.